GM will exhaust options before junking Saab

NEW YORK — General Motors Co. is pressing ahead with plans to shut down Saab, though it will continue to hear bids for the Swedish car brand, a company spokesman said yesterday.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

NEW YORK — General Motors Co. is pressing ahead with plans to shut down Saab, though it will continue to hear bids for the Swedish car brand, a company spokesman said yesterday.

Tom Wilkinson said the automaker is not commenting on reports that a deadline for proposals for Saab has been extended to Jan. 7. GM had previously said it was giving bidders until today to come forward with an offer for Saab until it decided earlier this month that it would wind down the brand.

"During the wind-down process we've heard from a number of people with proposals for Saab, and we're going to evaluate the proposals as we start the wind down," Wilkinson said.

Saab spokeswoman Gunilla Gustavs said GM's decision to wind down Saab still stands, though it will still entertain bids. Dec. 31 is "no longer a magical date" where a GM decision should be expected, Gustavs said.

GM has been in talks to sell Saab over the last month with Dutch exotic-car maker Spyker Cars. It has also heard from other suitors after an attempt to sell the brand to a consortium led by Swedish sports car manufacturer by Koenigsegg Automotive AB fell apart in November.

A Spyker spokesman said the Dutch carmaker remained in talks with GM over Saab as of yesterday, but no deal had yet been reached.

On Dec. 18, GM announced its intention to close down the storied Swedish brand.